Montauk Bass Bite Heats Up as Fluke Fill Long Island Bays

What's biting

What's next

Conditions look favorable through the coming days. Buoy 44065 logged winds around 4 meters per second (roughly 9 mph) with 1.6-foot seas and air temperatures near 69°F — a clean, settled setup for both bay and offshore runs. Water temps holding at 67–68°F keep forage fish active and feeding on predictable schedules, giving anglers a wide tidal window to work.

For striped bass, the focus right now is Montauk and the eastern Sound. Per the June 18 On The Water Long Island report, the Montauk bite on squid and sand eels is excellent, and that pattern is unlikely to soften in the next few days with temps stable. The June 19 On The Water striper migration map confirms bigger bass are concentrating on sand eels, squid, bunker, and herring — classic summer-transition behavior. Work the first-light and late-evening windows hard, especially along rip lines and tide edges east of the Point. First-quarter moon tides generate meaningful tidal exchange at inlet mouths; target the moving water rather than slack periods.

Keeper fluke should continue their run through the South Shore bays and Peconics. NY DEC Saltwater Fishing and Boating has confirmed the summer flounder season is open, and with water temps in the upper 60s, fish are actively holding on sandy bottom, channel edges, and drop-offs inside the bay systems. Bucktail-and-strip drifts on the incoming tide have historically been the most productive approach here, and that pattern fits current conditions well. Expect action to hold or improve through the weekend.

Bluefish are in season per NY DEC Saltwater Fishing and Boating, and late June typically brings tighter schools of bait pushing up along the south shore beaches and inlet mouths. Watch for surface activity and diving birds as your visual cue. Current DEC regulations carry no minimum size limit with a 5-fish bag for bluefish — but verify the latest rules before your trip, as regulations were revised this season.

Offshore, On The Water has been covering the giant bluefin tuna fishery within sight of the New York coast this season, and the buzz is building. Our buoy readings show upper-60s temps at the shelf stations, which may not reflect canyon conditions, but check sea surface temperature charts for temperature breaks before committing to a long run. If warmer offshore water is pushing inshore, the coming days could open a legitimate tuna window for anglers willing to make the run.

Bottom line for the weekend: prioritize the Montauk squid-and-sand-eel bass bite in the first and last hours of light, work fluke drifts through the South Shore bays and Peconics on the incoming tide, and keep an eye skyward for bluefish activity along the beaches.

Context

Late June marks the inflection point for Long Island's saltwater season. The spring striped bass migration — which peaks from April into May as fish push north through the surf and into the Sound — has largely wound down by now, and anglers shift from chasing a moving front to finding fish settled into summer feeding stations. The fact that Montauk is still delivering what On The Water characterized as an 'excellent' bass bite as of June 18 suggests either a late-lingering push or fish stacking at the eastern tip before dispersing to summer offshore grounds. Both scenarios are historically documented for this stretch of coast and represent a welcome extension of the productive spring window.

Water temperatures at 67–68°F from NOAA buoys 44025 and 44065 are about what you would expect in the third week of June, with the season tracking roughly on schedule. The Saltwater Edge Blog out of Rhode Island noted this past week that water temps across southern New England 'have been staying cool,' keeping both striped bass and squid fishing strong well into mid-June — a trend that matches what we're seeing at our buoy stations. Squid typically exit New York's nearshore waters once temps push past 70°F, so the fact that they remain a primary Montauk offering aligns with the cooler-than-scorching readings and suggests that productive window could stretch another week or two before the summer heat sets in.

Fluke action picking up in the Peconics and South Shore bays is right on time. Summer flounder historically move into these warmer, protected systems as June progresses, becoming far more accessible than they were in the cooler bay water of May. NY DEC Saltwater Fishing and Boating has been unusually active with regulation updates this spring — black sea bass rules were revised, bluefish limits changed, and multiple seasons opened in a compressed window — so anglers who fished these waters last season should double-check current limits rather than assuming carryover rules apply. Overall, Long Island's mid-June picture looks healthy: multiple species in season, stable temperatures, and credible on-water reports from the eastern end suggesting fish are precisely where you would expect them to be at this point in the calendar.